For the past six years, Mami has tried four times to bring Christian to Australia on a humanitarian visa — but all four applications have been rejected.

Refugee Council of Australia chief executive Paul Power said the immigration department had received more than 74,000 applications. Only 14,825 visas were granted.

According to him, the chances of a 29-year-old male from the DRC getting in through this system was "close to zero".

"The situation looks pretty grim sadly for refugees from Congo because there isn't anything on the horizon to suggest a peace process is possible," Mr Power said.

"Essentially it's much harder for an adult male who's separated from the rest of the family for quite some time, to demonstrate that his level of dependency is greater than many of the other applications that are being put forward."

As an alternative, the Federal Government's Community Support Program allows Australians to sponsor someone in need of a humanitarian visa — such as Christian — and assist their settlement.

But there are major barriers to access, such as more than $50,000 in costs and the job-ready criteria that requires the person to speak English "well", have a recent work history, tertiary qualifications or demonstrate a capacity to find employment.

Ms Nyiramuruta described the process as "overwhelming", but said she would not give up.

"Christian is very smart he can be someone in this country, I didn't bring lazy kids," she said.

She spends her spare time picking blueberries to pay for a room for Christian to live in.

After 11 happy years in Coffs Harbour, she still hopes to, one day, have enough money to sponsor him.

But Mami's working abilities are limited. The violence she experienced in Africa left her with injuries, including a slipped disc in her spine and post-traumatic stress disorder.

For now, she's spending her days worrying if Christian will pick up her next phone call.